With a minute and 10 seconds remaining on the clock and Hudson Catholic trailing Newark Tech by a basket, rising senior J.R. Lynch had a simple message for his teammates.

"We need a stop!" he repeatedly yelled to his teammates.

The Hawks listened to their leader, as a steal from Marion Williams led to two free throws from Lynch, which tie the game. Next possession, it was Williams knocking down two free throws to give Hudson Catholic, as the league's No. 1 seed held on for a nail-biting 45-43 victory over seventh-seeded Newark Tech last night in the Hamilton Park Summer Basketball League quarterfinals.

"Newark Tech is an all-around great team and tonight, they had us on the ropes," said Hudson Catholic assistant Derrick Mercer, who takes over the team for head coach Nick Mariniello during the summer. "Fortunately, we battled back and never gave up and I respect them for that.

"Fighting until the end is the most important thing and that's what we did."

Next up for Hudson Catholic is a date with The Patrick School in the Hamilton Park semifinals tonight at 8 p.m., while St. Anthony will meet the St. Anthony JV team in the other semifinal at 7 p.m.

The game was tightly contested from the very start, as the team's battled up and down the floor. With Newark Tech looking to pull away early, the sharp shooting of Lynch, who knocked down three first half three-pointers, kept the Hawks within striking distance.

With the game knotted at 19 right before the half, a three-pointer from Moustapha Lawrence gave Newark Tech the lead and momentum going into the second quarter. Newark Tech was able to feed off of that momentum, as the play of Tyree Sykes, who recorded eight of his 10 points in the second half, helped build a lead as large as six points late in the fourth quarter.

That is when Hudson Catholic began its comeback. After cutting the deficit to four points, a lay-up from Williams brought Hudson Catholic to within 40-38. Newark Tech shot right back with a basket of its own, before Hudson Catholic's Safee Sabur rushed down the court and finished a nifty, reverse lay-up to once again make it a two-point game at 42-40.

Lynch began to urge on his teammates -- motivation that inspired Williams' steal and a game-ending 5-1 run.

"It's a big responsibility to be a leader on this team and it's not a responsibility I take lightly," said Lynch, who finished with 15 points. "My coaches often tell me that I need to be a leader when things are good and when they're bad too, so when we were down, I had to make sure we didn't stay down."

For Mercer, heading into the upcoming season, it was pleasing to see Lynch step up in a close game and be the leader he knows he can be.

"He is what makes this team go, as his play, effort, and body language effect everyone else on the floor," said Mercer. "He has the two most important positions on our team as both our leader and our floor general, so when the rest of the guys see him fighting, they want to fight too."

Going forward, Mercer knows that he will need the same sort of resilient performance he got from his team against Newark Tech if the Hawks wish to advance any further.

"We know we can't overlook any opponent," said Mercer. "The Patrick School is a great team and we need to come out from the start and match their intensity.